


Clearly

by akanyanen



Category: Japanese Actor RPF, Johnny's Entertainment, Kanjani8 (Band), NewS (Band)
Genre: Fic Challenge, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-03-18
Updated: 2010-03-18
Packaged: 2017-10-30 08:44:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/329926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/akanyanen/pseuds/akanyanen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Yoko has an idea, Ryo and Uchi suffer just a little bit.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Clearly

**Author's Note:**

  * For [travelingpsycho](https://archiveofourown.org/users/travelingpsycho/gifts).



"You're most likely to be involved in a threesome," Yoko insists.

Ohkura, in the middle of eating lunch, looks horrified, then slightly disgusted and finally properly shocked.

"I have a girlfriend," he manages, after recovering from choking on his tonkatsu.

No one should ever have to choke on something as delicious as tonkatsu.

"Not that it would happen, it is just a statistically proven fact."

"Yoko, have you even taken a statistics class?"

 

"…That's besides the point, Mr. Murakami, your input is not required. Ryo and Uchi are gay for each other and it is our responsibility to help them confess." Yoko goes for the whiteboard and colored markers.

There's a collective intake of breath because things just got serious.

 

"We'll use our secret weapon, GB—"

"What's GB?"

"Don't questions usually come after the mastermind unveils his ingenious plot?" Yoko complains sounding exasperated.

"Ingenious plot?" Subaru whispers.

"Mastermind?" Maru gestures and makes an exaggerated impressed-face.

There's laughter.

"I think you're all forgetting Hina's Dokkiri!?" Yoko visibly pouts.

"Oi," Hina warns lightly.

"Okay, that was good, but this is different, Yokocho," Yasu says consolingly.

"It isn't! Besides, we're just helping to push them in the right direction," Yoko adds, accompanying it with a slightly lewd gesture that Subaru's quick to mimic.

"If they did like each other, wouldn't they have figured it out already?" Ohkura argues, not knowing why he decided to talk. Nothing good comes when he gives his input on anything. Focusing on eating the pudding Maru bought him would've been the safer, saner option.

"You're young yet, you'll learn." Yoko sighs.

"I've had more girlfriends than you," Ohkura mumbles into his pudding and Yasu makes a shushing motion.

"Back to what I was saying, threesome--you can go all drunk and girly on one of them and make that person, Ryo maybe, realize they're jealous, and from there--" Yoko pauses to draw a picture that sort of looks like two scrawny trees going at it, "- one of them will jump the other."

"...." Ohkura doesn't like this idea.

"But Ohkura's always all over Uchi... and Ryo too," Maru frowns.

Ohkura splutters a bit.

"It won't be any different from normal," Yasu agrees.

"Alright, Ohkura... you have no choice but to sacrifice your body for the greater good." Subaru's grinning at him, and Ohkura really, really wants to erase today from existence.

"Fuck you all," Ohkura whines.

"Just Ryo and Uchi will do." Yoko grins. "Now, will that be all the interruptions?"

***

 

"Wait, what?"

"Why do you think we're.. like that?" Uchi asks.

"But-you two were—"

Yasu looks a bit like someone just told him they liked repeatedly kicking small, fluffy cute things that have no means of self-defense.

"We're friends," Uchi insists slowly, patting Yasu consolingly on the back.

Yasu visibly deflates, making Uchi feel just a little bit responsible for his smile-that-got-turned-upside-down, even if it really wasn't Uchi's fault that everyone is grandly misinformed about the status of his and Ryo's friendship (that does not include sex or woobie love or anything like that).

Yasu when he's sad is really too much to take.

***

 

"Uchi's far from the straightest chopstick in the drawer, you know," Subaru changes the subject.

Ryo's pretty sure guitar arrangements and new instruments don't normally lead into a talk about his friend's sexual preferences. Ryo goes for the safe option of making an ambiguous mumble-answer into his drink.

Subaru's not one for drawing out things that make him uncomfortable, not when someone else can shoulder that burden.

"I'm sure if you jumped him, he wouldn't object," Subaru says casually.

Ryo can't think of anything to say to that. Or, well, he can, but the words are stuck floating around uselessly in his head.

"Aren't you thinking about your thing for Yasu?" Ryo shoots back, a bit late, uncalled-for embarrassment sneaking up on him.

"He jumped me a long time ago," Subaru answers back, unfazed. "You're both slow on the uptake."

Ryo downs the rest of his drink in defeat.

"We're friends, it's not like that," Ryo snaps. Subaru 'hmms', clearly not believing Ryo.

He and Uchi have been friends for years with no comments, seriously, what has gotten into the water in the practice room?

***

 

"I don't want your nasty germs," Uchi's voice is muffled behind two masks.

"A good friend wouldn't treat his friend, who brought porn to the hospital for him when he was bedridden and bored out of his mind, like a leper," Ryo grumbles, eying Uchi's plastic glove-covered hand clutching at a can of Lysol.

"A good friend wouldn't want to spread his nasty pig-infection to the friend who brought him his favorite soup in the whole world," Uchi sing songs back, holding out the thermos. "Even though said amazingly benevolent friend was told not to come see the aforementioned pig-flu infected-leper-friend in the first place."

Ryo grabs for it, even though nothing is appealing at the moment besides his pillow and sleep.

"I brought back your porn DVDs," Uchi adds.

Okay, maybe those would be okay too. After a nap, though, Ryo thinks. That requires Uchi leaving too because he doesn't ever seem to get sleep when Uchi is around.

Somewhere floating around in his fuzzy fevered-ridden mind is Subaru making a comment about how lewd and suggestive that sounds.

The prospect of table-meets-forehead and then beautiful silence and not thinking is beginning to sound amazing to Ryo right about now.

Ryo might have rested his head on Uchi's lap after eating a little bit of the soup, but neither mentions it. It was normal and comfortable before but in light of the recent influx of suggestions from their band mates, it is hard not to accidentally over think small things like that.

What would Uchi do if Ryo did like him that way?

He totally doesn't, though, so there's no need to worry about things like that, he supposes.

 

Totally.  
Definitely not.

Thinking the way your friend's hands feel nice brushing over your hair or how the way they laugh makes you smile isn't out of the ordinary. All friends do that.

Ryo doesn't have to think about how sometimes, not all that often, he catches himself wondering what it'd be like to kiss Uchi. It's probably, no definitely, all his band mates' fault.

His and Uchi's friendship is most important. There's no use going and making it all weird by doing something like trying to kiss him when he's got swine flu and the fever is making him think thoughts he normally wouldn't think.

When Ryo wakes up, he's covered in piles of blankets and Uchi's gone, but the thermos is nearby.

His phone is lit up on the side table with an email and Ryo fumbles for it, trying not to move around too much.

 

You're a moron, get lots of sleep.  
Drink the rest of the soup.

 

Ryo rolls his eyes but the room doesn't stop spinning when he tries to focus on the display screen.

Being sick sucks.

***

 

Hina comes into work and sits down next to Ryo who's sprawled out on the couch.

"Ryo-chan, about Uchi…"

Ryo might not be able to win a fight against a gorilla but he sure as hell can try to out run one.

***

 

"Maru-chan," Uchi whines, "what's with everyone lately."

Maru looks confused, "What do you mean?"

"Why do they think Ryo and I are together?" Uchi rolls his eyes.

"Aahh," Maru says, running a brush through Uchi's hair, "I suppose, the way you act around each other."

Uchi scrunches his face up, "Ryo doesn't ...see me that way."

"You don't know for sure," Maru frowns.

Uchi laughs, just a bit bitterly, pulling away from Maru.

"He doesn't," Uchi grins, and Maru knows it's forced, "and I don't like him that way either."

"Ucchan~" Maru starts.

"I'm hungry," Uchi whines. "Let's grab something from the convenience store."

It isn't resolved, but at least he knows Uchi does feel that way. Maru's willing to bet Ryo does too, even if he is a little (a lot) slow on the uptake.

***

 

"Your plan is Truth or Dare?" Hina says skeptically.

"Your faith in me is astounding," Yoko deadpans.

"They're not dumb, Kimi-kun," Maru suggests quietly.

"That's why they'll be drunk." Yoko beams.

"Ryo is highly suggestible and unusually cooperative when he's drunk," Subaru muses out loud.

"…Uchi is…" Yasu starts.

There's a slight pause and someone coughs.

"He's slutty all the time, not much difference from when he's sober."

"Says the person who turns into a clingy girl," Yoko laughs.

"Shut up," Ohkura whines.

***

 

A few rounds of (totally rigged) punishment-game shots later and Ryo and Uchi find themselves locked in Yoko's apartment closet.

"You know they're not going to let us out of here until they think we've... resolved things." Uchi kicks a box of Yoko's things, just a little vindictively.

"You're going to say we should make sex noises, aren't you?" Ryo grimaces.

"Unless you can think of a better alternative?"

"They're all in on it, next one of us will definitely get dared to kiss the other," Ryo says darkly.

Uchi laughs, unable to completely hide the bitterness in his voice when he's slightly drunk like this. He's just thankful it's dark, and Ryo's too busy complaining (ranting) to notice.

It would be funnier if Uchi didn't want to kiss Ryo.

***

 

Ryo goes into work with NEWS with a slight bounce in his step. Finally, today he'll get a slight break from the onslaught of questions about Uchi.

"Morning," Ryo waves at Pi, dropping his bag on a chair, grabbing a water bottle and flopping back onto the couch.

"Hey, have you talked to Uchi lately?" Yamapi asks.

"Oh god, not you too," Ryo bemoans, his one chance at peace shot to hell. He was counting on his other band to be possibly, slightly more sane.

Or at least not have horribly faulty gay-dar.

Come to think of it, what was he thinking, the universe is not that nice to him.

Actually he's pretty sure the Universe is too busy being amused at his life to notice that it sucks, really, really hard.

 

"…me too, what?" Yamapi sounds confused.

"I'm not in love with Uchi, okay, and just because I know he has a birth mark on his ass doesn't mean I've slept with him," Ryo yells.

It honestly ends up more whiny than angry yelling but that's only because he's suffered through way too many innuendos and blatant hints that some people think are subtle.

"That's cool," Yamapi nods.

"Okay, just so we have that clear," Ryo finishes, a bit lamely.

"Was just going to ask how Playzone was going," Yamapi says casually.

"Ah, good, I think," Ryo grunts.

"Good," Yamapi echoes.

Ryo murmurs his agreement, taking a drink of water.

"Wait, you really haven't slept with him?" Yamapi asks sounding slightly surprised.

Ryo spews water across the break room table, and makes a vain attempt at disappearing into the couch.

***

 

"I'm not gay," Ryo insists. Not that being gay is bad, he has friends Yasu whom he thinks are gay (maybe pretty much 100% sure are gay) and he's totally okay with them.

He, himself, is definitely not gay, though. He likes boobs, okay. His box, or two - okay or maybe five - of things-his-mom-can-never-see would totally back him up on this one.

"Neither am I," Uchi says, just as vehemently. Even though his rather large stash of not-so-borrowed shoujo manga isn't going to give him much 'street cred' in this situation.

He doesn't need it, though; one can totally be straight and like shoujo manga, and poodles and fashion.

Okay, it doesn't really matter because he's totally straight and he does too like girls, so there.

"Good, that's settled." Ryo sits down again.

"When wasn't it settled?" Uchi huffs.

They catch each other staring a few seconds later and mutually swear to some higher being that their band mates' creepy influence over their thought processes will, definitely, one day be gone. No more of this unnecessary questioning of sexuality and possible hypothetical attraction to one's best friend.

***

 

"...What are you doing Tacchon?" Ryo snaps, wide-eyed. Ohkura hides the handcuffs behind his back, like no one saw them and he didn't just make things really awkward.

"Are those handcuffs?" Uchi's voice is strained, like he's about to laugh.

"...No," Ohkura says, straight-faced. The clinking of metal - well, and the fact that they both saw the handcuffs - gives him away.

"What is going on, seriously," Ryo groans.

Uchi's expression is a mixture of really, really wanting to laugh and trying really hard not to.

"Why is everyone suddenly trying to set us up?" Ryo continues on, slightly annoyed that recently he's been forced to think about his and Uchi's relationship way too often.

He's fed up with thinking of labels, of people telling him he's in love with Uchi.

Embarrassed doesn't quite cover how Ohkura feels right now.

It's rare that Ohkura raises his voice; it usually is reserved for when someone tries to touch his food or, like now, when he's really embarrassed.

"You're the ones who brought it on yourselves!" Ohkura complains, pointing at Uchi, the handcuffs reappearing once again and jangling threateningly. "You have had a thing for Ryo for years. You're a horrible liar, everyone knows."

Uchi's opens his mouth to say something and nothing comes out.

"And you," Ohkura rounds on Ryo, "You are so far in denial it's not even funny anymore. You give him a spare key, and the way you talk about him, and not the ridiculously gay stuff in the magazines but all the time, in the break room and when I'm trying to eat, it is obvious to everyone but you. Both of you need to pull your head out of your asses."

There's a long pause while Ohkura gathers himself and takes a deep breath.

"Yeah... so," Ohkura coughs. Ryo and Uchi stand stunned because they can't exactly remember the last time they drove Ohkura's brain to explode.

"...Okay, if all that were true," Uchi starts, "your plan to get us together was to try and start a threesome with us?" Right now, its easier to laugh it off.

Ohkura mumbles something unintelligible, his face turning bright red.

***

 

All of a sudden, his bandmates stop mentioning it. Ryo doesn't hear about Uchi and him, there aren't any questions. That's fine - actually, no, its more than fine. It's great.

The only thing weird is he hasn't heard from Uchi in a few weeks since the day Ohkura came over to his apartment. He's probably busy with the new drama activities and the concert rehearsals and stuff, it's no big deal. They're both busy this time of year.

Christmas goes by, then New Year's and even after Uchi has finished with his concerts, there's nothing beyond a few short text messages on his phone. It's almost like Uchi is avoiding him, or avoiding being alone with him. Ryo doesn't like it.

***

 

"Seriously, what's going on?" Ryo isn't yelling but the frustration is clear in his voice.

Uchi is looking at something over Ryo's shoulder, not making eye contact.

Ryo's doesn't get why Uchi won't look at him, doesn't seem to want to talk to him, is suddenly too busy to hang out when they have the same day off.

"Why are you avoiding me, were you that put off with what Ohkura said abou--"

Uchi kisses him, lips pressed against his softly, moving slightly while Uchi's hand curls around his elbow. Uchi pulls back before he can full process what just happened and Ryo's left shocked. He didn't think what Ohkura said was true that Uchi did feel that way. It might make some sense now, why Uchi would avoid him. He felt more for Ryo, and Ryo's reaction was always to deny it.  
The silence that follows is easily one of the most awkward ever. Ryo's not sure where to go from here, up until recently he's been denying and ignoring how he's felt. The idea that Uchi just might like him that way didn't really occur to him, even after he sort of realized Ohkura and the others might possibly be right.

He's not even sure what he is feeling beyond wanting to be around Uchi, wanting to kiss him again. He doesn't mind (too much) if Uchi is whiny and a pain in the ass sometimes.

"They kept talking to me about it," Uchi starts, swallowing thickly and only casting fleeting glances at Ryo. "I was just curious, it doesn't have to--"

Ryo doesn't know what he's doing; he just knows if he doesn't do something Uchi will say it means nothing, laugh it off, and it'll go back to how it was before and, somehow, he doesn't want that.

He leans in quickly and Uchi's words die against his lips. It's like years of suppressed feelings are rushing to the surface and all that Ryo knows is he doesn't want to stop now. He doesn't plan on it, and Uchi isn't stopping him either. Not even when Ryo's hand slides under Uchi's shirt and inches under the waistband of his jeans.

***

 

"I'm not gay, I really do like girls," Ryo says again, lips pressing against Uchi's collarbone.

"You might need to look at a biology book, girls don't have—" Uchi's response is cut off in an abrupt moan when Ryo's hand brushes over unsaid part of Uchi's anatomy.

"Shut up," Ryo grumbles. "There are exceptions to rules."

It's only Uchi that he thinks of like this; it's weird but it feels right, good to slide further down Uchi's body, drawing soft noises from him as he goes.

***

 

"Does this mean they were right?" Uchi wrinkles his nose, pushing sweaty hair out of his face.

Ryo makes a noncommittal noise into the wrinkled sheets.

"…I don't want to see Yoko's face if he finds out," Ryo mumbles a little while later.

"It's more like 'when'." Uchi laughs.

"You can't laugh, you're harder to torment," Ryo complains.

Uchi laughs harder and Ryo rolls his eyes.

"I'd kick you, but I'm too tired," Ryo grumbles.

"Tired, or are your legs just too short?" Uchi teases.

"Oww, that's DV you ass," Uchi whines a few seconds later when Ryo proves that, yes, he can reach.

Ryo supposes a lot has changed between them, but what's important hasn't.


End file.
